Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Tamez
Hi Aaron, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve been passionate about storytelling for as long as I can remember. I was born and raised in Brownsville, Texas, by my grandparents. One of my earliest memories is receiving a weekly $20 from my grandmother on Fridays and going to the AMC at Sunrise Mall with my best friend (yes, we’d get dropped off). I became captivated by the stories on the big screen and often wondered about the cameras behind them—how many there were and how they captured the shots without being seen. Movie magic always amazed me.
At age 8, I was given my first camera, a Polaroid iZone, which produced small polaroids with graphics along the sides. I couldn’t understand how a scene could be captured on such a tiny strip. I became obsessed with watching MTV’s *Making the Video* and behind-the-scenes features and commentaries on DVDs. Yet, despite my passion, the world of cinema felt out of reach for a queer Mexican boy from South Texas.
At age 10, I left Brownsville to live with my mother and sisters in Dallas. My reality changed drastically as I became one of four children in a single-parent household. My mother worked hard to provide, but resources were limited, and I learned the difference between needs and wants. She incentivized my good grades the way my grandparents did, especially during Christmas, and in middle school, I received my first point-and-shoot camera. I documented everything with that Canon—my friends at orchestra practice, field trips, cafeteria moments, and family events.
By the end of high school, things became difficult for me, and I had to work hard to get back into the classroom where I felt most confident. I balanced multiple hospitality jobs with community college, convincing myself that the only way “someone like me” could tell stories was through journalism—interviewing subjects and documenting current events. I believed filmmaking wasn’t for someone with my background and thought, “You have to have rich parents.”
By the time I reached the University of North Texas, I was excelling in reporting, gaining admiration from my professors and becoming more competitive in the classroom. I was soon offered an internship with the City of Denton, anchoring their newscasts. There, I observed the crew using green screens, drones, camera rigs, and more. At the end of my internship, I asked to return the following semester to work behind the camera and produce the newscasts. They welcomed the idea, and that’s when I began learning the technical aspects of gear, shooting, and editing. At the end of my internship, I produced a clip for DPL2Go, Denton’s mobile library service geared toward underserved communities. They enjoyed the clip so much that it aired on DTV and was used for fundraising content.
Around the same time, my professor, Thorne Anderson, revised my syllabus so I could focus on digital video and long-format stories. My assignments started to highlight queer topics, featuring LGBTQ individuals and drag performers. One assignment, *The Top Three*, covered the top three drag queens at UNT’s first drag show. My peers thanked me for introducing them to my world, and that assignment changed everything. Suddenly, queerness wasn’t something I needed to hide to succeed, but something beautiful worth sharing with the world.
By the end of my studies, I realized that a career in news would require starting in a small, remote town and working my way to a larger city. I also recognized how much of myself I would need to suppress to fit into the news world. Producing stories within fixed templates while constantly working on future stories would emotionally drain me. It would take years of reporting short, 30-second stories before I could have the freedom to tell the stories I truly wanted.
After earning my Journalism degree, I chose not to apply for journalism jobs. Instead, I stayed in Dallas, kept my hospitality job, and attended every mass gathering and protest I could, combining my love for creative decision-making with my skill for documenting current events.
I continued collaborating with queer and drag performers like Bleach, Lagniappe, and Rose Gold, feeling the support of my community as they stood in front of my lens. When COVID-19 hit, performances went digital, and I helped these and other performers produce content for livestream drag shows. We would watch performers across the country put on shows from their bedrooms or living rooms. I wanted more opportunities to help queer people create content.
Though I had already planned to leave Dallas for Austin before the pandemic, I longed for a place with more queer creators and activism. When I saw artists like P1nkstar organizing digital drag shows and releasing their visual projects, I knew Austin was going to be the right move. After relocating in August 2020, I connected with local artists whose work I had admired, offering help to creatives and businesses who trusted me with their visions, such as Babiboi, Jotomagico, Pure for Men, Flesh & Chain and other content creators.
In 2022, a long-time friend gave me a flyer for the Austin School of Film, and I immediately enrolled. As a double Capricorn, I love learning, and I felt I had a lot of work to do and much to catch up on. At ASoF, I met other filmmakers, and we began supporting each other to produce our own short films. Filmmaking is nearly impossible alone, and I was finally starting to build both community and confidence.
I took a few sound courses and was soon invited to work on short film sets, recording and mixing sound. While sound is important, I often found myself watching the camera department set up rigs and pull focus, realizing I wasn’t where I wanted to be yet, but I was getting closer.
That’s where I am now, with a clear vision of the stories I want to tell, the people I want to work with, and the role I want to play on set. I’ve worked as a production assistant, shot, edited, directed, and sound mixed—whatever I can do to be in the room with great creatives and learn from their talents. I’m honing my skills and have started writing my own story ideas, realizing I may need to create the opportunities I want to see.
It’s been a long journey from video journalist to filmmaker, with multiple jobs along the way, but I believe in myself and my community, and I see a bright future ahead.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My journey hasn’t been easy. The biggest challenge I faced was not having an example to follow. I was the first in my immediate family to attend college, so I’ve had to teach myself how to navigate life. Every step I’ve taken has been self-funded, which has meant juggling multiple jobs and sometimes sacrificing time and energy for my passion for storytelling. Being a middle-class queer Latino in a predominantly white, straight-dominated field has also been a challenge, though it may be more in my head than reality. Despite these obstacles, I’ve learned the value of hard work—an essential trait when you’re your own biggest cheerleader.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a filmmaker, videographer, and photographer focused on empowering underserved and marginalized communities, ensuring their voices are heard. I’m especially proud of my activism work and projects created by and for the queer community. I enjoy collaborating with all types of people, particularly other LGBTQ creatives. What sets me apart is my willingness to take on any opportunity and always show up. Whether someone needs help with a project or on set, I’m there with a positive attitude, ready to create art—whether it’s my vision or supporting someone else’s—leaving my ego at the door.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
After the Covid-19 crisis, I learned the power of community. I moved to Austin during the height of the pandemic and was welcomed into small creative circles. Digital drag and projects like P1nkstar’s “Girls Like Us” showed that performers are ready to adapt and express themselves, and that audiences will support and find inspiration, even during the darkest and loneliest times.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.aarontamez.com
- Other: aaron@aarontamez.com
